The Nigeria INGO Forum (NIF) was established in 2014 to facilitate collaboration among international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) in Nigeria for humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding efforts. It serves as a vital platform for information sharing, advocacy, and engagement with authorities, donors, and the UN, ensuring the inclusion of INGO perspectives and those of affected populations in decision-making. Governed by a core membership of 53 members and nine observers, it operates under a Steering Committee comprised of five Country Directors and a Chair, supported by a Secretariat.
The purpose of the Humanitarian Safety Officer (HSO) position is to support the establishment and day-to-day operationalisation of NIF's Humanitarian Safety Unit (HSU) for the North-West, providing NIF member organisations with a principled, member-owned safety coordination mechanism.
For more details on the association's organization, statutes, charter, and services offered to its members, see https://ingoforum.ng/.
Responsibilities
What you will do
Generic responsibilities
- Compliance with and adherence to NRC and NIF-approved policies and procedures and to donor policies, guidance, and procedures.
- Proactive agenda setting; facilitating a space for NGO collaboration; enabling sharing of information and analysis for effective decision-making.
- Able to appreciate political necessity and policy issues in localization and the application of principles to programming.
Specific responsibilities
- Plan, convene and facilitate humanitarian safety coordination meetings and roundtables for NIF member organisations across the North West regions to strengthen operational awareness, promote information sharing, and support coordinated humanitarian response.
- Develop, validate and disseminate periodic safety information products, including the 6Ws database and quarterly operational reports, to support evidence-based planning by member organisations, while maintaining appropriate records of dissemination.
- Maintain a database of operational incidents voluntarily reported by member organisations, analyse trends, and produce information that supports humanitarian preparedness and operational decision-making.
- Support the identification of capacity development needs and coordinate logistics for HEAT, SSAFE or equivalent safety training for humanitarian personnel in collaboration with the Humanitarian Safety Adviser, member organisations and accredited training providers.
- Maintain regular liaison with relevant government authorities and humanitarian coordination stakeholders, in coordination with the Humanitarian Safety Adviser, to support humanitarian access and facilitate operational coordination in accordance with applicable regulations
- Provide advisory support on bureaucratic and administrative processes affecting humanitarian operations in the North-West, in collaboration with the Government Engagement Adviser and the Humanitarian Safety Adviser.
- Work closely with the Information Management Technical Adviser to analyse data and develop information products that support humanitarian coordination and planning.
- Monitor humanitarian, operational and contextual developments that may affect humanitarian activities and provide timely analytical updates to NIF leadership to support informed decision-making
- Ensure attention to protection issues arising from HSU work, particularly the handling of vulnerable-group information, sensitive sources, and confidential incident data.
- Support the planning and delivery of workshops and other capacity-development activities for member safety focal points, as necessary
- Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by NRC country leadership.
Qualifications
What you will bring
1.Professional Competencies
- Minimum two to three years of relevant experience in coordination within a humanitarian/recovery context.
- Experience working in complex and volatile contexts.
- Documented results in related responsibilities.
- Proficient in MS Office applications including Word and Excel
- Fluency in English, both written and verbal, and fluency in one or more languages spoken in Northern Nigeria, particularly Hausa, is an advantage.
Context related skills, knowledge and experience
- Experience working for a humanitarian coordination body
- Strong capacities to develop relationships with Nigerian government counterparts that can yield positive results
- University degree in conflict and development, international relations, international humanitarian law or related technical field.
- Minimum three years' cognate experience working for an NGO (local, international, or UN Agency
- Knowledge of the humanitarian coordination system and the mandates of the actors involved.
- Good understanding of the security environment and economic, socio-political dynamics in Nigeria, the Lake Chad Basin and Sahel region in general
- Sound working knowledge of the UN Security Management System, the Saving Lives Together (SLT) framework, and OCHA-led access coordination architecture
- Sound knowledge of International Humanitarian Law and civil-military coordination principles and practice as applied in Nigeria.
- Written and spoken fluency in English.
- Strong data analytical and interpretation skills.
- Commitment to and understanding of international humanitarian standards and principles.
- Ability to work independently in a fast-paced and often demanding environment.
- Exceptional interpersonal skills and experience in a humanitarian setting
2. Behavioural competencies
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to work independently in fast-paced environments.
- Excellent writing, editing, and analytical abilities.
- Proven ability to build relationships and facilitate dialogue among diverse stakeholders.
- Ability to present and represent collective views to various stakeholders.
Critical Interfaces
- NIF Director and Deputy Directors
- Humanitarian Safety Adviser
- Information Management Technical Adviser
- Policy Advisor
- Government engagement team
- INGOs
- United Nations
- Government
- Donors
- Local NGOs
What we offer
- Duty station: Zamfara, Nigeria
- Contract: 8 months
- Salary & Benefits: Grade 6 on NRC’s Nigeria National salary scale
- NRC is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to diversity without distinction to age, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, and physical ability.
- We think outside the box, encourage ideas, and give responsibility to all employees at all levels. You will have many opportunities to be heard and take the initiative.
This is National Position targeting Nigeria Nationals
Organization context
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is a global humanitarian organisation helping people forced to flee.
Join us in assisting millions of people in areas where others cannot, tackling some of the world's most dangerous and difficult crises. Bring your skills and dedication to an organisation recognised for providing high quality aid and for defending the rights of refugees and internally displaced people.
At NRC, we give responsibility to employees at all levels and foster professional growth and innovative teams. You can expect a supportive culture and an open dialogue with management. We are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion.
Together, we save lives and rebuild futures.
Safeguarding is central to NRC’s work. We expect all employees to:
• treat everyone with respect and dignity
• contribute to building a safe environment for all
• never engage in any form of exploitation, harassment and specifically sexual exploitation, abuse and sexual harassment (SEAH)
• always report. NRC has a zero-tolerance approach to inaction against exploitation, abuse and SEAH
